No. 1 Gamecocks Tally 85-38 win over Hampton
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Aliyah Boston missed the second half of No. 1 South Carolina’s game against Hampton on Sunday with her right foot in a walking boot, but reserves Bree Hall and Ashlyn Watkins scored 14 points each in an 85-38 win.
Kamila Cardoso added 11 points and 14 rebounds for South Carolina. It was the 6-foot-7 forward’s eighth career double-double.
Boston, the reigning Associated Press Player of the Year, took a hard fall on a drive to the basket late in the second quarter and needed several moments to stand up. Soon after, she headed to the locker room before the period ended.
Boston did not come out for the start of the third quarter, returning to the bench midway through the period with a walking boot on her right foot. Boston spent the rest of the game cheering on her teammates, who improved to 6-0 this season and 5-0 all-time against the Pirates.
The Gamecocks hadn’t played at home since the opener Nov. 7, when they unfurled their NCAA Tournament title banner and received their championship rings. A productive road trip followed, with victories at No. 14 Maryland and at No. 2 Stanford in overtime.
South Carolina easily dispensed of Hampton in front of an appreciative home crowd, scoring 20 straight points and dialing up its trademark defense to lead 22-4 after the first quarter.
Hampton, of the Colonial Athletic Association, led 2-0 on Camryn Hill’s bucket 45 seconds in. The Pirates missed their next 14 attempts to fall way behind.
Hill led the Pirates with 16 points.
Notables
- The Gamecocks went on a 20-0 run in the first quarter, holding the Pirates to just four points and defense forcing four turnovers
- 4 of 5 starters scored in the 1Q
- Zia Cooke led the team throughout the first 10 minutes, tallying 9 points
- South Carolina held Hampton to just a 16.0% FG PCT in the first half
- Block Party
- Sania Feagin tallied her first block of the season, along with fellow Gamecocks Kamilla Cardoso (3, season high), Aliyah Boston (2, season high), Ashlyn Watkins (1) and Raven Johnson (1)
- Three Gamecocks ended in double digits (Cardoso, Hall, and Watkins) with Cardoso notching her first double-double of the season with 14 rebounds
- Bree Hall put up a career high 14 points, Talaysia Cooper also recorded a career high of 9, and Watkins tied her season high at 14
- Cooke ties for ninth-overall (Stacy Booker) in the record books with 418 three-point attempts
- 76% of the Gamecocks’ points came off the bench (65-85)
